a look at writing, marketing & the mindset to improve your skills in both.

This classic song by Paul Kelly, about the late Vincent Lingiari, is a song I have loved ever since I heard it for the first time when I was about 6 years old. I never really listened to the message of this song, however, until much later. Although the song retells the story of a famous Aboriginal land rights case, in many ways it is also a fable about persistence and commitment to a goal. As Paul sings in the chorus, "From little things, big things grow".

Recently, Scribe reached its' one year anniversary of being a registered business. There was no party, no cake and candles, no fat-o-gram (thank goodness) and no alcohol. But there was a brief appreciation of everything that has happened during the last 12 months. So many new ideas learned, new people met, programs taken part in and relationships established.

As the year progressed, it occurred to me more and more how much starting a business is like planting a tree. You start out with a seed, an idea. As much as you envisage a mighty tree standing in the spot of your choice, the fact is that you need that seed to begin with. Neither can that seed be left alone, because if left unattended, nothing will happen of notice. For that seed to grow even a stem, the soil that seed is planted in needs constant watering and maintenance. Even if you pay constant attention to that seed, it's not going to turn into a tree overnight. In order for that seed to grow into a mighty tree, it takes time. It takes patience. Often, it takes the acquired wisdom of other gardeners to know that what we are doing is right. As it grows, that potential tree may even require some pruning.

Starting your own business, likewise, can cause us to quickly become impatient. We want the results, the reputation and the money and we want it now. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how much you choose to examine it), starting a business from scratch doesn't work that way. Even the biggest corporations mostly took years of growth , careful attention and maintenance before they became the powerhouses they are now. Remember that.

The more people you meet and get to know who are established in business, the clearer it will be whether you are going the right way about taking care of that seed you have growing. Every part of the process involves new skills to learn- be it time-management, financial management, networking strategies or even just good old fashioned patience. If you want to have 20 clients in a week, first learn how to do a top job and be punctual with 2 clients a week. The better you get, the bigger the game gets.